Equinor: sanctions prevented survey of damaged Nord Stream pipeline

Norwegian energy company Equinor said that Norwegian and EU sanctions prevented it from delivering equipment and carrying out surveys of the damaged Nord Stream gas pipeline. The work would violate Norwegian and EU regulations, Equinor said in a statement provided to Reuters.

In September, several unexplained underwater explosions ruptured the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, and the pipeline operators asked Norway’s PRSI (Pipeline Repair and Subsea Intervention) to mobilise vessels and equipment to survey the damage.

Norway has a PRSI team, established in 1987 by Statoil (now – Equinor) and Norske Hydro, to organise emergency support in case of pipeline damage. PRSI is managed by Equinor, funded by the industry and its 72 members include both Nord Stream pipeline operators.

Therefore, in October last year, Nord Stream’s operators asked PRSI to mobilise vessels and equipment to survey the damage. However, they received no assistance. “PRSI, which is administered by Equinor, complies with current regulations related to sanctions and notified (the operators) that we were unable to carry out the work as requested,” – reported Equinor in a statement to Reuters.

Unable to receive assistance from Norway, Gazprom-controlled Nord Stream AG chartered a Russian-flagged vessel to carry out surveys at the explosion sites and later reported that it had found “technogenic craters” on the seabed. Sweden and Denmark conducted separate investigations. They concluded that the pipelines had been blown up deliberately, but assigned no blame to anyone. Meanwhile, Moscow and the West, writes Reuters, without providing evidence, accused each other of damaging the pipelines.

Source: PortalMorski.pl